Dave Berliner, owner of Redco Audio and SpaceLift Products, watching the SpaceLift in action in his family's Stratford-based facility.

Dave Berliner, owner of Redco Audio and SpaceLift Products, watching the SpaceLift in action in his family's Stratford-based facility.

Photo: Jordan Grice / Hearst Connecticut Media

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(Left to right) Dave and Ruth Berliner stand next to their SpaceLift.

(Left to right) Dave and Ruth Berliner stand next to their SpaceLift.

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The SpaceLift was designed to make storing boxes and other items in the attic easier and safer for homeowners.

The SpaceLift was designed to make storing boxes and other items in the attic easier and safer for homeowners.

Photo: Jordan Grice / Hearst Connecticut Media

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Stratford manufacturer helps homeowners maximize storage space

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STRATFORD — As people’s desire for more stuff continues to grow so does the demand for storage.

A Stratford-based manufacturer is looking to help with the SpaceLift attic lift.

Dave Berliner developed the elevator-style product to help homeowners maximize their attic spaces without risking injury by carrying heavy items up attic stairs.

Berliner also owns and runs Redco Audio at 1701 Stratford Ave with his wife, Ruth. The business makes cables, panels, and other equipment for recording studios.

The attic lift is the sole product under Berliner’s SpaceLift Products brand that is operated by Redco Home.

According to Ruth Berliner, rather than making monthly payments for a storage facility, customers can use the space within their attics more efficiently with the attic lift.

“If you’ve ever had attic stairs and you’ve got something in your hand, it’s very difficult for anybody really to go up and down the stairs with that, so it’s supposed to be in conjunction with your attic stairs,” said Ruth Berliner.

According to Dave Berliner, the concept for the attic lift was initially created by his brother Brian.

The switch-controlled lift acts like a dumbwaiter for storage within homeowner’s garages or houses, allowing people to transport boxes and other items to their attic without having to carry them up the attic stairs.

Along nine years, Dave Berliner said he and his team invested over $250,000 into developing software and creating the SpaceLift as a user-friendly and safe product.

The product has different safety features, including sensors that stop the lift from moving if it is overloaded or its path to the ground is obstructed. The attic lift holds a maximum weight of 200 pounds.

While his business specializes in creating and selling audio equipment, Dave Berliner said he jumped at the opportunity to use his expertise in a different way to meet a need.

“I love motors,” he said. “Anything that has to do with electric motors I just like, so I am always looking to find something where can use a little of our metal, use our motors and some software and some electronics and make something.”

The SpaceLift comes in two models with different widths, and can be professionally installed or by the homeowner themselves.

“It’s my back saver,” said Keith Murphy who installed the lift to reach his 10-foot garage attic. “Anything that we can store out of the way, clears up space for my two cars and my motorcycle in my garage and just helps organize things and keep them out of the way. They are accessible easily by climbing the stairs, putting them on a lift and dropping it down.”

Dave Berliner said there are some improvements he and his team want to make to the lift moving forward that will make the product more energy efficient and give customers options

He said wants to develop a smaller unit moving forward that can hold less but also take up less room. The Stratford business owner added that he would like to look into developing a Bluetooth feature in the future to allow lift owners to control the product with their phones or tablets.

“All of that stuff is the future,” Dave Berliner said. “That’s what people want today. They want to be able to control things with their cell phone, they want to do as many things as possible with their smartphone.”